Welcome to Katie and Andy’s blog site about smart fortwo cars in general and our own fortwo, currently on order. We will post news, experiences, conjectures and creative writings. We hope you find this site interesting and informative. Please provide feedback!

The smart fortwo was recently crash tested by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). It received five out of five stars for its ability to protect occupants during side crashes. It won four stars for sheltering drivers and three stars for passengers during head-on crashes. The NHTSA did note a “concern” that the driver’s door unlatched and opened during a side-impact crash test. It goes on to state “a door opening during a side impact crash increases the likelihood of occupant ejection”.

Press reaction from these results is mixed. One headline reads “smart fortwo receives high marks marks in US crash tests”, another says “smart gets so-so U.S. safety ratings” while another states “smart fortwo scores poorly on NHTSA front crash test” - talk about spin and a range of opinions!

A custom smart fortwo is competing in the 2008 One Lap of America (formerly named the Cannonball Run). Stephen Noton and his employer GenieKnows.com are partnering to raise money for Make-A-Wish Atlantic Provinces through the One Lap of America to fund a 5 year old’s wish to meet Tony Stewart of NASCAR fame.

Britney is a spunky 5-year old from Bannon, New Brunswick. While recuperating from her heart transplant last year, Britney started watching the NASCAR races and cheered on Tony Stewart. Her room at home, decorated in orange, is a tribute to her favourite driver.

Stephen is driving a modified smart fortwo with after-market equipment ranging from BRABUS suspension to Parts & Prints Carbon Fiber body parts. More info on the event and Stephen’s fortwo can be found on the 451 smart fortwo website.

smart USA has sent an email to reservation holders as well as putting out a Press Release saying the first shipment of cars are here and ready to be delivered to smart dealers. The dealership network which will consist of 74 smart dealerships. By the end of January, 68 of the 74 dealers will be open and operational, subject to licensing and other required approvals. The remaining six smart dealers should be open by June 1st. A list of dealers can be found on the smart USA website.

Dealerships will be branded as “smart center” with the city name (for example – the dealership in Beverly Hills, California will be called - smart center Beverly Hills). Each smart center will have a distinctive smart look, various display and demonstration cars, and a tridion safety cell. For the true smart enthusiasts, vehicle accessories and personal merchandise will also be available for purchase.

[Update: turns out this is an Associated Press syndicated piece.  My local paper did not provide attribution]

Ann M. Job titles her article, “Smart fortwo is a real car with real-car faults”. The article is published in San Mateo County’s The Daily Journal. This is the most negative write-up of the smart fortwo I have seen. She spends some time on the fortwo’s value proposition, comparing it to the Toyota Yaris and Hyundai Accent. She points out the 8.7 gallon gas tank allows only about a 300-mile range. She opines that the plastic interior and loose trim “did not give the impression of a quality-made car”. She observes that the car is noisy and has a poor suspension which had the car “bobbing up and down like apples in a barrel at Halloween time”. As many others have mentioned, Ann found the transmission to be rough shifting and very “jerky”. Less negative are mentions of the fortwo’s safety features, legroom and “open feel”.

Clearly, the fortwo is not for everyone Thanks, Ann for offering another viewpoint. We are still very much looking forward to getting ours!

The Arkansas Democrat Gazette quotes Roger Penske as stating, “we have over 40, 000 people who have given us a reservation” over the internet. Penske told this to more than 1,000 members of the Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce at a meeting held December 13, 2007. He went on to say folks in smaller markets, such as Arkansas, should be able to purchase a fortwo in 2009.

There is a new video on YouTube showing Jay Leno’s reaction to the smart fortwo. Jay is very car savvy and has quite a collection of classic cars. His thoughts on the fortwo - “its an impressive little vehicle and its a lot of fun… and hey, it makes people smile.”

Brian Cooley, Editor at large at CNET, has a video “preview” of the smart fortwo on cnet.com. Brian is 6′3″ tall and says that headroom and legroom are fine with the seat all the way back. He mentions the ride is very firm and does a fair amount of up-and-down over road imperfections due to its short wheel base.

His summation is, “whee”. Brian notes he has a fortwo reserved and “digs this car”!